One of the big changes in the regional innovation ecosystem in the past few years is the growing importance of publicly listed companies.

This month, our reporter Avery Mullen takes a look at the phenomenon in the region’s largest city in an analysis for the Halifax Innovation District.

The article notes the explosion not just in the number of publicly listed companies, especially in the life sciences space, but also in their soaring valuations. In the latest big deal, Metalmaterials Inc. joined the Nasdaq with a market value of more than US$2 billion, though its share price has fallen by more than half since then.

The article also notes that Swarmio, which has offices in Halifax, Sydney and the Toronto area, plans to list on the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Overseen by the Halifax Partnership, the Halifax Innovation District works to unify the various startup and research support organizations working in Halifax and Dartmouth. Entrevestor has a contract to provide regular content for the district’s website.